Shloka 6
अध्याय २२० — बलिवासवसंवादः
Bali–Vāsava Dialogue on Kāla and Steadfastness
तेजो दमेन धप्रियते तन्न तीक्ष्णोडधिगच्छति । अमित्रांश्व बहुन् नित्यं पृथगात्मनि पश्यति
tejo damena dhriyate tan na tīkṣṇo ’dhigacchati | amitrāṁś ca bahūn nityaṁ pṛthag ātmani paśyati ||
Bhishma berkata: “Keagungan cahaya dan kekuatan batin dipelihara oleh pengendalian diri (dama). Sesiapa yang tajam dan terburu-buru, tanpa kendali, tidak mampu benar-benar menanggung sinar itu. Orang yang digerakkan nafsu akan sentiasa melihat banyak musuh—seperti keinginan dan kemarahan—seolah-olah terpisah daripada dirinya; maka batinnya terbelah dan mudah terdedah.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True tejas (inner radiance and strength) is preserved by dama (self-restraint). Without restraint, a person becomes driven by passion and harshness, loses inner stability, and experiences desire, anger, and similar impulses as hostile forces that overpower the self.
In Shanti Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and inner discipline. Here he explains that moral-spiritual power is not mere intensity; it depends on restraint, and lack of restraint leads to continual conflict with one’s own inner ‘enemies’.